«The Great Silk Road» – these words evoke images of caravans filled with exotic goods, traveling through scorching deserts and steep mountain passes, braving numerous dangers. For months, these caravans would persistently advance, departing from the flourishing and wealthy cities of the Mediterranean, traversing the lands of the Near East, and passing through Central Asia on their way to the mysterious «people of silk,» as the ancient world referred to the Chinese. But did such a road truly exist? Or were there multiple equivalent routes? Perhaps the Great Silk Road is more of a symbolic name, representing the age-old exchange of goods, ideas, and cultures between the West and the East.
The Great Silk Road played an exceptional role in the exchange of material and cultural values, uniting the distinctive civilizations of the Near, Middle, and Far East with Central Asia. The term «Great Silk Road» was first used in 1877 by the German geographer Ferdinand von Richthofen to describe this vast international network. The history of the Silk Road is a testament to the rise of civilizations. However, alongside peaceful merchants, war chariots also thundered down these routes, and the clanging of weapons often replaced the soothing sound of camel bells. Cities fell, peoples disappeared, and religions shifted, while the old caravan routes and inns were buried under the sands. Yet, new routes emerged, either through the northern steppes or the high-altitude southern passes. The origins of the Silk Road stretch back to the distant past, to the 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE, as evidenced by archaeological findings discovered thousands of kilometers from their places of origin.
Route: Kokand — Isfara — Kanibadam — Khujand — Ura-Tyube — Bunjikat (Shahristan) — Varzminor (Ayni) — Panjakent — Zeravshan — Anzob — Dushanbe
Our journey begins in the western end of the Fergana Valley, known to the Chinese as Davan. This region was famed for supplying the «heavenly horses» to both eastern and western nations. From the city of Chust in Fergana, the tradition of black-and-white embroidered skullcaps, called chustis, spread widely across Central Asia. A chain of cities—Kashgar, Osh, Andijan, Fergana, and Kokand—links this stretch of the road to Isfara, a city known for its apricot orchards.
Isfara is mentioned in Babur’s memoirs from the 15th century as a well-established city. The mountainous region around Isfara has been inhabited since the Stone Age. In the first millennium BCE, this area was home to Iranian-speaking nomads, the Saka, who left behind numerous burial mounds and grave sites. The region also boasts many fortified mountain castles built between the 4th and 7th centuries CE, such as Kala-i Zumradshoh, located on the grounds of the modern «Zumrad» sanatorium. In Isfara and its surrounding villages, numerous archaeological, architectural, and artistic monuments remain to this day.
One well-known architectural landmark can be found in the village of Navgilem—the Abdullakhan Mosque and Madrasa, commissioned by the Shaybanid ruler Abdullah Khan II between 1583 and 1598. The exact year of its construction is noted in a chronogram corresponding to 1585-1586. In 1909, a local man named Said Alibay built a tall minaret in the eastern courtyard. South of Isfara, in the village of Chorku, stands the Hazrat-i Shokh mausoleum, the only surviving wooden mausoleum from the 10th to 11th centuries. This ancient mausoleum is enclosed within a later clay structure like a pearl inside an oyster. It features seven wooden columns, a frieze with Kufic Arabic inscriptions, an intricate coffered ceiling, and eight ornately carved brackets and shields. The beams resemble birds perched on branches. The carved wood from Chorku bears stylistic similarities to 10th- and 11th-century architecture found in Upper Zeravshan. In the 19th century, near Chorku, the Langeri Mukhiyin mausoleum was erected as a memorial to the famous 13th-century theologian Imam Umar ibn Abdulaziz (Sadri Shahid).
Modern-day Isfara and its surroundings are famous for their artisans, including potters (kulolgar), master ceiling painters, and wood carvers. The next stop on our journey is Kanibadam, known as the «city of almonds.» References to the city, sometimes called «Kand,» appear in Sogdian documents found in the 7th-8th century fortress atop Mount Mug. By the 9th-10th centuries, Kanibadam belonged to the district of Khujand and was situated about 30 kilometers away.
In the center of Kanibadam stands the Mirrajab Dodkho Madrasa, an architectural and historical monument dating back to the 16th-17th centuries and now functioning as a local history museum. This madrasa, built from fired brick, boasts a grand portal that leads into a spacious courtyard, surrounded by 15 hujras (cells) and a summer mosque decorated with vividly painted columns and ceilings. A tall minaret from the early 20th century, adorned with intricate brickwork, rises in the center of the city, echoing the style of the 9th-12th centuries. In the city’s northeastern outskirts, one can find the Oim Madrasa (17th-18th centuries), with a courtyard design typical of madrasa architecture.
The route from Kanibadam leads to Khujand, the key city along the Great Silk Road, passing by the southern shore of the Kayrakkum Reservoir, created in 1956 on the Syr Darya River. During the Achaemenid period, Khujand was a crucial eastern outpost of the Persian Empire, regarded by ancient Greek and Roman authors as the boundary of Asia. Some 2,500 years ago, Alexander the Great camped here, founding the settlement of «Alexandria Eschate» (Alexandria the Farthest). The ancient author Arrian recorded that in 329 BCE, Alexander ordered the construction of city walls around Khujand. In 1975, archaeologists uncovered a segment of an ancient wall dating back to the 5th century BCE, while excavation trenches 27 meters deep into the citadel revealed layers from the 7th-5th centuries BCE.
Khujand’s ancient citadel, situated on the Syr Darya’s banks, covered an area of 320 by 200 meters. The fortress was repeatedly stormed by the forces of the Umayyad Caliphate, Turkish tribes, and Genghis Khan’s armies. The city, irrigated by five canals, had 10.5 kilometers of defensive walls with seven gates leading to the city’s main streets. Arabic geographers in the 10th-12th centuries called Khujand the «Bride of the World.» In the early 20th century, the city retained its Eastern character, with 146 districts centered around mosques, over 100 hauzes (water basins), 37 caravanserais, and 300 teahouses. Khujand was not only a bustling commercial center but also a major hub of silk weaving and a cultural nexus, producing more than 300 scholars, poets, and musicians. The city’s talented artists and woodcarvers adorned its homes, mosques, and teahouses with intricate designs.
The city’s main architectural landmark is the Sheikh Muslihiddin complex near the Panjshanbe Bazaar, a large structure consisting of a mausoleum, mosque, and minaret. The mausoleum, founded in the 11th-12th centuries, was rebuilt in 1394 by order of Timur (Tamerlane), who was a follower of Sheikh Muslihiddin, and later renovated in the 16th century.
From Khujand, the road continues southwest towards the ancient city of Ura-Tyube.
Route: «Termez — Denau — Tursun-zade (Regar) — Gissar — Dushanbe — Kufarnihon (Andigon) — Fayzabad (Vashgird) — Garm (Gurkand) — Jirgatol — Daraut-Kurgan — Kyzylsu River Valley — Kashgar (China)»
The «Karategin Route,» also known by some as the «Ptolemaic Route,» represents the most direct path from the southern reaches of Central Asia and Khorasan to China. This ancient thoroughfare connects the region’s rich historical and cultural tapestry, stretching back to the sixth and third millennia BCE. During this period, the area was home to the Gissar culture, whose people constructed light frame dwellings on meticulously paved stone platforms. By the first millennium BCE, these lands had become part of Bactria, the ancient central Asian state often described with epithets like «with high-flown banners» or «the land of a thousand cities.» The region was renowned for its copper, silver, and gold mining, iron smelting, wheat cultivation, and textile production, all of which spurred vibrant international trade.
At the outset of the Karategin Route, near Regar (Tursun-zade), in the valley of the Shirkent River—a tributary of the Kafirnigan River—one can find the fossilized tracks of dinosaurs, measuring 50 cm long and 30 cm wide, attributed to the theropod species Macropodosaurus gravis, a large, heavy-limbed lizard. In 1984, around 300 fossilized reptile footprints, measuring 60 cm long and 45 cm wide, were discovered in the same valley, belonging to bipedal theropods and avropods. Additionally, large bipedal dinosaur tracks (70 cm long and 60 cm wide) have been found in a small valley of the Harghush River, a tributary of the Kafirnigan.
Among the architectural highlights at the beginning of this route are two mausoleums of Khoja Nakhshron (11th-12th centuries), located near Tursun-zade. Their understated forms are enlivened by intricate brickwork, carved terracotta inserts, and calligraphic inscriptions.
Traveling between Tursun-zade and Gissar, in the village of Shahrinau, the road crosses several hills that mark the site of a major Kushan-era city (1st-3rd centuries CE). This city was square in plan, with walls extending 7 km and towers placed every 25 meters. Stone capitals with characteristic Greco-Roman acanthus leaves, intertwined with mythical griffins with lion’s paws, have been uncovered, suggesting influences from Eastern Iranian mythology.
The next historical and cultural landmark is situated on the southern edge of Gissar, at the base of an ancient fortress that has evolved into a complex of monumental buildings from the 16th to 18th centuries. This ensemble includes grand fortress gates, two courtyard-style madrasas—Kukhna (old) and Nav (new)—the mausoleum of Mahdumi Azam, and a caravanserai. Southeast of this complex lies the Sangin Mosque (16th century), featuring a winter dome and monumental vaulted arcade supported by stone columns. To the east, near the Chashmai Mohien spring, archaeologists have uncovered another madrasa. The area around the fortress (about 80 hectares) is now part of the Gissar Historical and Cultural Reserve.
25 km from Gissar, on a high terrace, lies Dushanbe, a city with a population of 1 million, once considered a modern addition. However, recent archaeological studies have established its origins as far back as the 3rd century BCE. Interestingly, the contemporary «Gissar-Dushanbe» road follows the ancient route, leading to the fortress walls of the Greco-Bactrian city, specifically to where a caravanserai once stood. Currently, a small portion of this ancient settlement, which existed until the 5th-6th centuries, has been excavated, revealing substantial workshops likely associated with textile production.
Route: «Dushanbe — Tamilot (Nurek) — Burban (Dangara) — Munk (Hovaling) — Hulbuk (Kurbonshaid) — Rustak (Sayid) — Parkhar — Kovbandj (Pyanj) — Khalovard (Kolhozabad) — Levkand (Kurgan-Tube) — Kobadian»
The «Southern Route» weaves a historical tapestry from Dushanbe through the ancient heartland of Bactria and Tocharistan, extending towards the ancient city of Bactra (Balkh) in northern Afghanistan. This route is not only a journey through diverse landscapes but also a voyage through time, traversing the remnants of once-thriving civilizations.
To travel from Central Tajikistan to the southern parts of the country, one must cross two significant mountain passes: Chormagzak and Sharsher. Between these passes lies the Vakhsh River, which is home to the Nurek Dam—the tallest in the world at 310 meters. This engineering marvel creates a reservoir that holds nearly 11 million cubic meters of freshwater.
One of the notable cities on this route is Hulbuk, known today as Kurbonshaid. In the 9th to 11th centuries, Hulbuk served as the capital of the Khuttal state. Extensive excavations conducted over 30 years have revealed a grand palace complex divided into two sections: an elevated citadel and lower residential areas. The latter features spacious courtyards paved with intricately laid fired bricks, luxurious living quarters, a small theater, and a mosque. The interiors were adorned with ornate stucco, frescoes depicting humans and animals intricately woven into decorative patterns. Remarkable aspects of this palace include an advanced heating system with underground air ducts, a sophisticated water supply and sewage system, and a uniquely designed palace bathhouse. Recently, archaeologists uncovered a fragment of a collapsed portal with elegant Arabic inscriptions.
The Hulbuk Palace, like the Samandid structures in Bukhara and Samarkand (9th-10th centuries), was not inferior in grandeur and comfort to the palaces of the Arab world. Hulbuk stands as a testament to the high level of urban architectural sophistication of its time.
Among the cities of Khuttal visible from this route, the most prominent was Zoli-Zard (Parkhar), which thrived from the Greco-Bactrian period (3rd century BCE) through to the 11th-12th centuries. This city is renowned for its high-quality carved panels and lattice screens made of stucco, decorated with complex intertwining patterns and calligraphic inscriptions. The city of Sayid, another Khuttal settlement, has yielded 15 large residential estates of wealthy citizens.
Among the architectural monuments of medieval Khuttal is the Mausoleum of Amir Said Hamadoni, built in the 15th century in Kulyab. Over time, it evolved into a complex reflecting various periods. Hamadoni, known for his preaching in Kashmir where he was called «Amir Kabir,» later settled with his disciples in Khuttal, where he was eventually buried.
To the southeast of Khuttal lies the modern village of Kolhozabad, where a significant early medieval city called Khalovard, which was once the capital of Vakhsh, has been explored. Surrounded by a fortified wall with towers, the city’s high citadel featured a palace and a Buddhist temple separated from the rest of the city by a deep water-filled moat. Buddhism, which originated in India and Afghanistan in the early centuries CE, coexisted here with Zoroastrianism and Manichaeism. The Ajina-Tepa monastery complex, dating from the 7th to 8th centuries near modern-day Kurgan-Tube, stands as a brilliant example of Buddhist architecture and art. The two-courtyard complex featured domed and vaulted spaces surrounding a multi-tiered stupa. In one corridor, archaeologists uncovered a 14-meter sculpture of Buddha in Nirvana. The walls of the complex were covered with frescoes and reliefs, and deep niches housed sculptural representations of Buddha.
From Kurgan-Tube (ancient Levkand), the route continues south towards the lands of Kobadian, concluding an epic journey through the historical and cultural landscapes of this ancient region.
Route: «Balkh — Faizabad — Barpandja»
The «Great Pamir Route,» as previously discussed, branches into three distinct paths:
The Pamir region, known as Badakhshan, covers nearly half of modern Tajikistan, encompassing 63,700 square kilometers. Encircled by an unbroken chain of towering mountains, the Pamir is one of the highest mountain systems on Earth, with altitudes ranging from 1,800 to 7,425 meters.
The villages of Badakhshan, stretched along the river valleys, are composed of individual homesteads accommodating large patriarchal families. Over centuries, the traditional lifestyle—based on irrigation agriculture and transhumant pastoralism—has been meticulously refined, enabling the highlanders to thrive at altitudes of 1,800 to 4,000 meters. They have developed a unique type of highland dwelling, featuring an integrated complex of residential and utility structures centered around a large, enclosed central hall (up to 100 square meters), topped with a tiered wooden ceiling known as «chorhona,» and equipped with a light-venting chimney called «rauzan.» This dwelling type, introduced to Central Asia by Indo-Aryan tribes, finds analogs in ancient architecture spanning from the Mediterranean to China.
On the Karategin-Pamir branch of the route, small fortresses were established in the centers of existing principalities: Kalai Khumb, Kalai Rojar (Vanch), Kalai Vomar (Rushan), Kalai Barpandja (Shugnan), and Kalai Panj (Wakhan). Along the main Wakhan route, a group of monuments directly related to trade on the Great Silk Road can be found.
47 kilometers from Khorog, towering over the village of Kukhilal, is the mountain of the same name, known for its famed Badakhshani «lale» or noble spinel. Referred to as «Badakhshani lal,» it is mentioned in historical texts like the Hudud al-Alam (982 AD), Al-Biruni’s Mineralogy, and Marco Polo’s accounts (13th century), which note that locals «dig in the Shighnan mountains (Shugnan) and extract balashi (rubies) by royal decree.» Approximately 500 ancient mining sites from the 8th to 11th centuries have been discovered in the Kukhilal mountain.
100 kilometers from Khorog and 1.5 kilometers from Ishkashim, along the Pyanj River, there existed a fortified caravanserai, Dorkisht, from the 6th to the 12th centuries, which served as a crossing point on the road branching off towards Faizabad (Afghan Badakhshan). 13 kilometers from Ishkashim, near the village of Namatguti, lies one of the oldest fortresses of Western Pamir—Kaahka (3rd century BCE — 7th century CE). Perched on a cliff in the valley, this fortress extends 675 meters in length and 200 meters in width. The robust, stone and mudbrick double walls are reinforced with 56 round and square towers with battlements. A citadel with several palace rooms sits at the elevated northwestern corner. Historically, a bridge spanned the narrow Pyanj River near the fortress. According to scholar I. Steblin-Kamensky, the village name «Namatguti» derives from the Sanskrit word «namatgata,» meaning «sacred place.» In this village, there is a significant Ismaili shrine, the mazar of Shohi Mardon Hazrati Ali, possibly of pre-Islamic origin.
Another major fortress lies 75 kilometers from Kaahka, above the village of Yamchun, known locally as «Zamri Otashparast» (Fortress of the Fire Worshippers). This fortress, spanning 900 meters in length and 400 meters in width, occupies a remote rocky slope, cut off from its surroundings by two deep river canyons. It features three concentric rings of double walls with 40 towers, with a citadel on an elevated section, leaving a lasting impression with its grandeur. The Central Asian explorer A. Stein described these two fortresses as «beautiful examples of Central Asian fortification architecture, in its mountainous variant.»
Beyond trade caravans and military expeditions, missionaries and pilgrims also traversed the Pamir routes of the Great Silk Road, earning it the title of «The Road of Ideologies.» Archaeological research reveals the diverse nature of pre-Islamic beliefs in Badakhshan, where ancient Iranians worshipped fire and the sun, practiced ancestor cults, and revered Buddha (a local variant of Buddhism). Above the village of Wrang, on an artificially hollowed cliff, lies a Buddhist cult complex from the 4th to 7th centuries. This three-tiered structure rises above a courtyard enclosed by high walls with towers, surrounded by monastic buildings.
In the 7th century, the traveler Xuanzang wrote about Buddhist monasteries in Wakhan, and the discovery of a Buddhist inscription on the Pamir, deciphered as «Narayana triumphs,» seems hardly coincidental.
Most of Badakhshan’s population adhered to ancient Iranian cults associated with fire and sun worship. In the village of Zong, a small fire sanctuary was excavated, consisting of a cross-shaped room with crossarms measuring 5.5 to 6.5 meters. The three crossarms housed fire altars, while the fourth featured a semicircular hearth connected to a rectangular stone box for collecting sacred ash.
Among the villages of Wakhan, Yamg stands out for its historical scholar, theologian, poet, and traveler Sufi Mubarakadam (d. 1910). A vertical stone near his home, with a hole for marking calendar days, still stands on a clearing. In the home of a local elder, Gulomiobaev Atitan (115 years old), original ceiling paintings depicting people, animals, plants, and calligraphic inscriptions are preserved. Yamg is also renowned for its musical instruments, particularly the multi-stringed «balandmukk,» expertly crafted by Sufi Mubarakadam himself.
Our journey concludes in the last village of Wakhan, Langar, where petroglyphs on gentle granite slopes depict mountain goats, caravans, riders with banners, and Ismaili hand symbols.
The numerous historical and cultural monuments along the Wakhan segment of the Great Silk Road have led archaeologist A. Zelinsky to dub it the «Great Pamir Route,» while A. Stein noted that this route «was the main road connecting Western Asia and, consequently, the classical world, with deep Central Asia and, therefore, the Far East.»
Above Langar, at the confluence of the Pamir and Vakhandar rivers, where the Pyanj begins, stands the fortress of Ratm. From here, the main route continues along the Afghan «Wakhan Corridor» to Tashkurgan (China).